A Project of The Center for Climate and Security

How can we address the security risks of climate change?

Addressing the security risks of climate change means managing the unavoidable, and avoiding the unmanageable. First, governments and societies must commit the resources necessary to manage climate change impacts on food, water and energy security, as well as its implications for geopolitical dynamics in strategically-significant parts of the world, such as the Arctic, the South China Sea and the Middle East and North Africa. Second, governments and societies must take measures to avoid worst-case climate change scenarios which may be very difficult for nations and international institutions to manage effectively.

Some examples include: incorporating climate change considerations into national security, defense, diplomatic and development strategies; addressing climate change at collective security institutions; climate-proofing efforts to enhance food, water and energy security; ensuring that critical infrastructure is able to withstand future pressures from more frequent and intense extreme weather events; developing the legal and institutional structures to manage migration as a climate adaptation strategy; incorporating climate concerns into military-military and civilian-military cooperation on disaster risk reduction; improving understanding of how climate change pressures interact with state stability and state legitimacy; committing significant resources to climate resilience in unstable parts of the world, and developing climate mitigation strategies that are consistent with international security priorities.